Nestled up against Khao Sok is a primordial landscape unknown to most western travellers: Khlong Phanom National Park. It is sometimes just called Phanom national park. as Its larger neighbor and nearby Khao Sok Lake overshadow it at every turn. However, Khlong Phanom National Park is rich in natural wonders. In this blog we’ll look at what the intrepid traveler can find in this unexplored section of Thailand jungle!
Sometimes spelt Klong Phanom or Klongphanom, the park is just a couple of kilometres down highway 401 from Khao Sok. Khlong Panom National Park covers just over 400 square kilometers. Most visitors to Khao Sok have seen the park without knowing it.
The tall cliffs of Khlong Phanom are visible from the road to the west. They create some of the most stunning views on the way to Khao Sok Lake.
Thai jungle plants in Khlong Phanom National Park
Striking, knife-edged karst cliffs populate most of the park. These cliffs make it harder to explore the park. However, they also protect the jungle from outside threats.
Additionally, they provide homes for some incredible plant species! Orchids and Lianas thrive here, and the cliff faces are vertical forests, and hosts to rare endemic palms.
One of the most famous Khlong Phanom plant species is the Mai Pai Chiang Ruun. This is the largest species of bamboo in Thailand, and one of the largest species in the world! A little while ago, we created a tour to a grove of this giant bamboo. It remains one of our favourite treks, and you can read all about it here.
You can find another famous jungle plant, the Rafflesia Kerrii, in Khlong Phanom National Park. Unlike others in Khao Sok, this site is unknown to visitors and easy to reach.
A pickup truck is helpful to take guests high into the hills above the local Soi Tham Peung street. After this a short, steep hike will lead to the blooms! This is an interesting hike. Few spectacular views exist, but some great off-trail sections and in-your-face hill climbs are present.
Cliffs keep many parts of the park safe from too much agricultural development and tourist traffic. However, some areas of Khlong Phanom National Park are still suffering.
For example the southern side of the park is completely un-touristed. As a result, this area suffers from heavy deforestation and encroachment from palm plantations. We hope that educating guests about the beauty of the park will help to protect this beautiful jungle.
Exploring Khlong Phanom National Park
On The River
Although Khlong Phanom National Park is small, it has a lot to offer to the intrepid visitor! A great way to see the park is by river. You can take a canoe trip that starts at the Wat Tham Wararam cave temple.
This tour begins at the temple, and visitors enjoy a cool walk through the cave to the river. Guests can feed a lively school of wild fish that swim among the rocks. After that, they can hop in their canoes and relax on the water! Brightly-coloured birds dart overhead, and monkeys play in the trees as the canoes follow the river through Khlong Phanom National Park.
In addition to a standard canoe trip, Khao Sok Riverside Cottages offers special canoe and trekking activities. This tour combines a canoe trip and a hike, both in Khlong Phanom. The canoe trip explores seldom-visited areas of the Sok River, and the hike leads guests to the 65-million-year-old “Tam Gao” cave. Indigenous mountain tribes once inhabited this cave and preserved evidence of the ancient rituals they practiced.
Finally, there is the option of river tubing! This is a great way to get up close and personal with Khlong Phanom National Park. This tubing trip begins at kilometre 92, and covers some pretty exciting stretches of river.
As a result, you can only do this activity with a guide. You need to stay on the right path in the jungle!
In the jungle
Leaving the river and entering the jungle, Khlong Phanom National Park offers many options for adventurers. Several hiking spots exist within the park.
As a result of the rugged terrain, treks here are moderate at best. All treks in Khlong Phanom will require the services of a guide, and may necessitate hiring a park ranger too. No well-maintained paths exist in Khlong Phanom, and no signage is present in the forest.
One trekking destination in the park is the Khao Wong camp. Communist rebels used this site as a hideout in the 1960s and 70s!
Guests will leave the park headquarters, and pass the Khao Wong waterfall. Eventually they will find a grassy meadow and fruit trees such as jackfruit, guava and lime. Walking downstream, guests can enter a huge cave: another former communist hideout.
In addition to recent history, visitors to Khlong Phanom National Park can view neolithic cave paintings! This hike ranks among the most demanding around Khao Sok, and it offers guests a unique and challenging trek!
Hikers should note that rain can heavily impact hiking in Khlong Phanom. Karst cliff faces channel rain water to the ground, and all this water can accumulate to flood the lush Thailand jungle! These flooded forests are absolutely magical to explore, however, as long as you don’t mind a bit of water!
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